American buy now, pay later credit card alternative Affirm is beefing up its presence north of the border through a C$340 million (US$264 million) deal to buy Toronto-based PayBright.
Affirm says that PayBright's first-mover advantage in the Canadian payment instalment market gives it an opportunity to expand across North America.
Launched by PayPal co-founder Levchin in 2012, Affirm partners more than 6500 merchants helping them drive sales, grow average order value, and increase repurchase rates through its point of sale buy now, pay later option.
About 6.2 million people use the platform, with two thirds of loans this year taken out by repeat users. The company's biggest money-maker is exercise bike outfit Peloton, while earlier this year it scored an exclusive deal with e-commerce marketplace Shopify.
News of the PayBright acquisition comes weeks after Affirm filed an initial public offering prospectus to list on the Nasdaq.
Says Levchin: “PayBright shares Affirm’s goal of improving the payments experience for consumers and merchants alike, and PayBright’s base of merchants complements our own customer network. We look forward to welcoming their talented team to the Affirm family.”
The cash and equity deal is slated to close in the first quarter of 2021.